Are the Nets still positioned to land the top pick? Here's where to watch and where the bets line up.
The Brooklyn Nets remain out west and will head down to Crypto Arena.
But many still wonder if the franchise is heading downward to the top pick of the NBA Draft before facing the Los Angeles Lakers.
Brooklyn faces the second-best odds at grabbing the top overall pick heading into Friday's game in Downtown LA. However, a new anti-tanking proposal presented by NBA commissioner Adam Silver Friday could alter some things.
One proposal could allow even NBA play-in postseason teams to qualify for the lottery. But another presents a "5 by 5" scenario where the five worst teams become a lock to fill the top five spots in the draft, including the Nets.
Silver continues to be mindful of who might be purposely tanking to improve draft positioning. Brooklyn has managed to avoid any kind of league punishment.
Looks like Friday's game presents a chance to improve positioning in the draft...without tanking of course.
Brooklyn enters as a massive 16.5-point underdog per FanDuel Sportsbook. They're facing one of the Western Conference's best teams in the Lakers, who are currently third behind the San Antonio Spurs and Oklahoma City Thunder in the race for the top seed there.
The Nets, meanwhile, can either avoid ending with the league's worst record or simply lose out. Some fans hope for the latter.
And Brooklyn is in a great position to pull it off.
The Nets are depleted across the board on the injury front. Lead scorer Michael Porter Jr. remains out with his ankle ailment. Rookies Egor Demin (foot) and Danny Wolf (ankle) also are injured. Day'Ron Sharpe (wrist) is one other Nets player who's been shut down for the rest of the season.
Meanwhile, Noah Clowney remains battling with an injury with a right wrist sprain. But he's listed as probable ahead of the Friday game.
The Nets will likely turn to Ziaire Williams to lead on the scoring front. Although rookie Ben Saraf has raised his game another level for the Nets during his callup to the roster. Saraf also threw down a monstrous dunk over four-time NBA champion and one of the league's consistent defenders Draymond Green this week.
Still, Brooklyn is facing a well-structured Lakers team now led by Luka Doncic. LeBron James remains a fixture here even though he's taken on a facilitator role. Austin Reaves is one more active scorer for LA.
Brooklyn's game will air on the YES Network for the Nets, then Spectrum SportsNet for Laker fans.
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